How We Met Barney
by jamie55
Summary: future AU - Ted told his kids how he met their mom, then they wonder: who is Barney? They wanna meet him, and talk to Robin about it who is reluctant. - NOT a death fic. Okay there's one death... but you don't really know her and it's just the catalyst.
1. Chapter 1

**Title:** How we met Barney  
**Disclaimer:** I do not own the rights to the show "How I Met Your Mother" or to any of its characters. But I did make this story.  
**Summary**: AU. After Ted finishes telling the tale of how he met their mom, they wonder how Barney's doing.  
**Character:** The entire gang of course as well as a few others; offsprings who are introduced and some OFC and OMC. later on.  
**Pairing:** I want to point out that I am a solid BRotp fan. However, this story involves Ted/Robin, Barney/Robin, and etc.  
**Setting:** Two timelines, one in the year 2030 - where Ted has just finished telling his kids how he met their mom - and the other around the year 2019, and onwards, where the story of how they got to where they are in 2030 is explained. The sections in the past - with respect to the year 2030 - (2019 and onwards) is italized.

**Beta:** roland44, ROLAND is awesome.  
**A/N:** I actually have an ending! No waiting months for an update, yay!

* * *

"And that, kids, is how I married your mother," Ted finished off his tale. His kids seemed relieved, his daughter Linda smiled while his son David gazed away.

"Well," David said, "it's always nice to hear that story; the full version..." He mumbled disgruntedly.

"Yeah," Linda agreed. Her smile vanished and she sat back, into the couch, letting her body lean into the comforting fabric. She felt a lump building in her throat, she swallowed. "I miss mom..."

"Me too."

Ted knew it was a hard story to hear. Their mother had passed away almost 10 years ago, but it still hurt.

"That uh..." Linda thought, changing the topic, "Uncle Barney? He sounded funny... Have we met him?"

"He did sound kind of familiar..."

"You did, when you were smaller." Ted winced, that's the question he didn't want to answer.

"Did he die?" Linda asked concerned. The man did seem to love life on the edge...

--

_Ted looked like a mess. His hair wasn't done, his eyes were red with bags under them and, of course, he wasn't wearing a suit. But that was understandable, because Ted was still in mourning. It wouldn't be right if he was wearing a suit._

_That didn't excuse him, though._

"_Robin told me," Barney said. He was standing in the living room, Ted's living room, and he too was a wreck. Not as bad as Ted but still. His eyes seemed blood shot and his hair a disarray from having his hand run through it on the way here._

_He had left Robin in the hotel room._

"_Ted..." Barney tried to say. His lips trembled, he shut his mouth and he blinked in an attempt to stop the moisture. "Ted," he tried again, his voice hiking, its tone wasn't in his control anymore. "Ted, why? Whu – How could you?..."_

--

There was a sudden noise, the front door opened up.

"Hello?" A familiar voice called out. "I got a few bags if any of you care to lend a hand!"

Linda and David got up to go help her out. Ted stayed behind, taking a deep breath and turning back to his papers.

"Hey Aunt Robin, d'you buy some cookies?" David asked, picking up a bag.

"Yeah, they're in there, somewhere..." She grinned. "So what did you guys do all day?"

"Dad told us a story." Linda explained, putting a can of beans away.

"Did he bore you two to death?" She joked, knowing full well that Ted could get carried away with details.

"Hmm, I feel okay so..." David mocked.

"It was the story of how he met our mom." Linda saw the effect it had on her Aunt. She froze, a quick intake of air, something twitched – something buried inside... She caught herself.

"Really?"

The kids glanced at each other before settling their eyes back on Robin. David was sitting at the counter, munching on a few cookies; Linda was folding a few bags.

"Well," she said, her tone regained, "did he finish it?"

"Yup."

"Good."

"Aunt Robin?" Linda began.

"Hmm?"

"Who's Barney?"


	2. Chapter 2

Beta: roland44

A/N: My cure to the "Barney's dead in the future" theory. =)

* * *

_It was the year 2019._

_Ted's wife had just passed away. He was left alone. It wasn't her fault, he knew that, she had fought back... the doctors told them there wasn't much chance that... but..._

_He locked himself in the bathroom._

_Lily and Marshall had offered to take care of Linda and David for a while, they were staying over. Robin had rushed back from Greece and Barney was the first to arrive._

_But he needed to be alone. _

_He let himself slide from the door to the ground and pulled his knees up close. His head dropped and his vision blurred._

_She was gone..._

_-_

"_Where'd Ted go?" Robin asked Barney._

"_He went to cry in the bathroom," Barney calmly answered. The two were getting ready for bed._

"_What?!"_

"_Relax, Scherbatsky. The man just lost the love of his life. Let him cry a bit."_

--

It was the year 2030.

Ted had just finished telling his kids the story of how he met their mother, from "watch it, buddy!" to "I do" – it was an impressive journey – and now the two were wondering why they don't know more about "Barney".

"Did something happen to him?"

"Uh... no, not exactly-"

"'Cause according to dad's ending you guys we're all still friends. You and he even had a thing going!" David continued.

"Did you just say 'a thing'?" Linda glared at him.

"What? That's what they called it back then." His sister shook her head in disapproval and shame. "You and he did, didn't you?"

"Yes, but that was a long time ago-"

"Yeah, yeah, it all happened a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away – we get it. That was before mom died, before you and dad got together, before all of that, but what happened to him?"

--

"_Robin it's been 6 months." Barney sighed. "Ted's a big boy, I know you're worried but you have to let him get on with his life."_

"_I know, I just thought maybe I could do some shopping for them or-"_

"_Robin." Barney had stood up from his chair and closed the gap between them. He grabbed Robin's hand; she was packing her stuff away. "Robin, please. Please?" he gulped, his eyes were strained, collar open, jacket off, she hadn't noticed that he wasn't shaving... "Come sit down with me?"_

--

"Ted, what did you tell them about Barney?" Robin had sent the two to fetch the laundry.

Ted took a while to answer; he purposely kept his concentration on his papers, trying hard not to make eye contact with his wife. "I told them the truth."

"Ted, we agreed not to talk about it." Her reply was cold, but then again how dare he bring the subject up? They hadn't talked to Barney in years and his contact with Marshall and Lily was either dwindling or strong, either way, Robin didn't know.

"We have photos of him all over the place, _Robin_," he responded as harshly. "It was gonna come up eventually."

She let her anger simmer, boiling down to a point. Ted was going to pay for that. She bit her lip; he was going to pay dearly. If not now then later, in bed? She'd make him bruise; have him take her to some fancy bed and breakfast, any excuse to 'suit up' as _he_ would put it, and then call out_ his_ name...

"Alright, we got the laundry going."

Robin turned around and plastered on a smile. "Great! Let's get out of your dad's hair, eh? I'll take you out for lunch."

"Isn't it a little late for lunch?" Linda asked.

"We'll have an early supper then, how's that sound?"

"I'm okay with it, you?"

"Whatever." Linda shrugged.

"Ted, you okay with making something for yourself?" Robin called as they made their way to the door.

"Yeah, sure."

"Good," she said and closed the door.


	3. Chapter 3

PART 3

beta: roland44

A/N: My cure to the "Barney's dead in the future" theory. =)

* * *

"_Well, here we are..." Ted fell back into his couch after putting his two kids to bed._

"_Yup," Robin said, flipping channels. There was a long silent._

"_So did Barney ever?..."_

"_No, can we not talk about Barney, please?" Her eyes left the television, pleading with him to not breach the subject. Their actions last night; this whole situation... The awkward pain was still too fresh in her memory._

"_Okay," Ted agreed. He felt bad. He felt guilty. He felt sad. But right now, he was happy to watch a rerun of 'Law and Order' with his friend._

--

"So, he's still alive?" Linda asked. The girl never gave up, did she? Her mother had the same determination.

"Yes, he's still alive." Robin said hoping it was true.

"Then what happened to him?"

"We... grew apart..." She focussed on the road. Two blocks away from the house, one more 'til there's a right turn, stop sign ahead...

"Does he still talk to Aunt Lily and Uncle Marshall?" Linda continued her questioning.

"Maybe, yes..." She saw the girl nudge her brother. "Why?"

"We want to meet him."

Robin slammed on the breaks.

--

"_Barney, I'm sorry. I'm so, so very, very sorry. It was one time and he was just so devastated and then one thing lead to another and – and I'm sorry..." They had met up in a hotel, a nice one, not ridiculously pricey but decent and clean and big and fancy enough. _

_Barney and Robin hadn't seen each other in three weeks. During which time Barney had worked and traveled and worked, but most of all – most of all he was thinking of her. He was thinking about the fight they had, and about their compromise. She would spend another month helping Ted get back up on his feet and coping with his wife's death, meanwhile he took that offer at work to re-hack at some contract across seas. But he missed her. He missed his girlfriend and he looked forward to their evening calls the same way he looked forward to his next breath. _

_The first week was fine; a little distance makes the heart grow fonder, right? The second week she had to skip two of their calls. The third week, three more were missed._

_He couldn't wait any longer, so he finished early, passed the buck to the new guy – he could handle – and headed home for a surprise visit. _

_He got a hotel room, booked a romantic dinner and even thought about bringing up that tricky question._

_Sure, he felt bad for Ted. Sure, he wanted to help him out. (He paid for most of the hospital bills, didn't he?) But he still had the love of his life, and he wanted to take advantage of it._

_That was before he knew what had happened._

--

"What did you tell them?" Lily asked over the bathroom phone.

"Nothing," Robin replied, "what was I supposed to tell them?" Lily stared at her friend, clueless about what to tell her – she knew what she wanted to say but it wasn't what Robin needed to hear – knowing the sensitivity of the issue at hand.

"If you want I could take them to see him..."

"Lily –"

"It's not like they're going to forget about him very easily, and it'll be good for hi –" she managed to stop herself and replace her words without too much trouble, "for them."


	4. Chapter 4

PART 4

beta: roland44

A/N: tada!

* * *

Barney sat in his boxers and an old t-shirt; a bottle of beer in his left hand and the remote control in his right.

So what if his hair was growing out?

So what if his place was a mess and if his couch was permanently stained?

No one was here.

No one visited, not really. He could get it cleaned up.

He was taking a few weeks off from work, was that so absurd of an idea? Was that really _so_ bad for Barney Stinson to take a break from work?

He'd take a shower tomorrow, and then maybe he'd visit his brother... Hadn't seen him in a while... James told him over the phone that Sam was going to sleep-away camp this year... He could teach him a few tricks for skinny dipping or something.

*dingdondingaling*

And there was possibly the most annoying ring tone ever created.

"Hey Lily," he answered.

"Hi Barney! How you doing – are you in your boxers?" Damn video phone calls, you couldn't get by with anything anymore. Luckily he had kept his figure.

"Uhh, yeah, went out with the boys last night, got in late, no big." When she kept staring at him he said, half heartedly, "party... Woo..."

"Right, okay, are you busy tomorrow?" An eager smile beginning to appear, he knew it well.

"Tomorrow? Yeah, I'm super busy... Uh, I was gonna see James and –"

"How about Friday then?"

He frowned, only the slightest tinge of paranoia coming up, "why?"

--

_It happened at 3pm on March day, when the air was thick and temperature seemed to rise. It was the kind of day you were happy to have a cooling system in your home. David and Linda and Robin had gone to the zoo. Meanwhile, Ted was trying to pull himself together._

_He should be over the bump by now..._

_But everyday he woke up and somehow – for some reason, expected to see her. He needed her._

I'm sorry, Ted... I love you... Take care of the kids... Please, be strong... You can do it, I know you can...

_He tightened his jaw to make sure no one would hear the sobs, although he still felt the tears._

"_Ted?" He heard a knock. Robin._

--

"Hey Aunt Lily," Linda said after answering the door, "Dad! Aunt Lily's here! Dave and I are heading out okay?!" They barely heard his mumbled response and soon the three were in the car on their way to Lily and Marshall's home.

Both their kids were in college, they were doing their exams, finishing in a few weeks, and would be home for the summer.

"So are we really going to meet him?" David asked, his eyes growing wide as his thoughts continued. "You think he'll be my wingman?"

"You're not 21 yet," his sister said, crushing his dream.

"Yeah, but... You know, when I am..."

Linda looked away from her younger brother to stare outside the window at the passing seagulls and other cars. "I'm surprised he agreed to see us..." she mumbled.

"Why?" Her brother whispered back.

"Hello?" she spoke up, catching her Aunt's eye. "I, uh... I'm gonna write to my friend Gendra, that alright?"

"Sure, honey, go ahead." Lily answered before looking back to the road.

Moments later, David's phone buzzed. He pulled it out to read a message his sister had sent him:

Un. Barney was in love with Au. Robin! They broke up / or something / and then she marr'd dad! How do you not C the triangle? B-R Vs Dad-R, duh. We'r in the middle of it. =/

He glared at her and texted back:

That was ages ago, 2xduh - he's prolly over dat by now. :p

She read it, sighed, shook her head, and texted back:

You don't get it.

--

"_Ted, why? Whu – How could you?..." __Barney struggled to form words._

"_Uncle Barney?" A young girl said. Linda had crawled out of bed and was staring, dumfounded, in her yellow pyjamas clinging to her striped green and dark blue blanket. "Are you hurt?"_

_She stunned both her Uncle and her father. Barney covered his eyes and turned around._

"_Ted?!" He asked; he couldn't – he wouldn't have this argument in front of her, none of this was her fault._

"_Uh, Come on Linda," he tenderly advised, "your Uncle Barney and I have to talk."_

"_But he's hurt!"_

"_No, he's alright..." Ted tried to motion his daughter out of the room._

"_No, he's hurt," she protested, "he was crying, I saw! Daddy he's not alright, you have to help him."_

"_I'm fine!" Barney spun around, taking a deep breath and swallowing the lump in his throat the best he could. "I'm fine, Linda, really."_

_She looked him over carefully, with kind un-judging eyes. "You sure?" She quietly asked._

"_Yes," he nodded, "I'm sure." He even managed to smile. _

_The little girl ran up to him for a hug, which he gladly bent down for, before running off to bed. "Good night, Uncle Barney!"_


	5. Chapter 5

PART 5

Beta: Roland44

A/N: Posted tonight by popular demand for magpieinthesky and sbmshaneomaniac. And now I shall fall onto my bed. BED!

* * *

Barney hadn't seen Ted's kids in a decade – or just about. He still got a few Christmas cards from them but he wasn't big on Christmas.

So he got a new suit for the occasion, cleaned up good. His eyes might give something away, he wasn't sleeping _that_ much – aside from that he looked awesome.

He was patiently waiting with Marshall – who was still as tall as ever.

"Nervous?"

"Hehehe," he chuckled hoarsely, "please." He paced the floor one more time. "Do you think they'll remember me?"

"I don't know," Marshall said looking through the latest news.

"Well, did they ever talk about me?!" Barney became anxious.

"Uh, maybe... Look at that, FOX news is facing bankruptcy!"

"Marshall, focus!" He used his classic two fingered focussing manoeuvre. Marshall couldn't help but smile. "What?"

"Barney, you haven't done the 'focus' thing in 7 years."

"Oh," he paused to think. "Really?"

--

"_I'm fine, really!" Ted insisted, trying to convince Robin. She wasn't, but she knew that pushing the topic further couldn't do much good. "How are the kids?" He changed topics; they were the ones who really mattered. He turned and pretended to rearrange something on his bed side, anything._

"_They're good... They're drawing pictures in the living room..."_

"_Good..." He wished his voice didn't make that noise._

"_Ted?" She hesitated. "We have to talk."_

"_What's there to talk about?"_

"_Well, for one David keeps asking me where daddy is, and," she hesitated but gravely added, "Linda wants to know if you're sick too."_

"_Me-?..." Ted stammered, "oh God, no... I ..." he fell back on his bed, griping his forehead. He let out an aggravated sigh, angry at himself. All they had left was him, and he couldn't face them. He felt his lips quiver._

"_It's okay, Ted," her comforting voice rang in, penetrating his head. She sat down beside him, and he sat up. _

"_No, no it's not okay. My wife, my 'the-one'... she's... she's gone. She died and I'll never see her again; I'll never hear her again; I'll never get to make her laugh or kiss her again; all I have, all that's left, are those two beautiful children. She left them behind, 'cause I'm supposed to be able to take care of them, and I'm not!" He fell back down on his bed. Robin thought for a second allowing him to add, with a small sob, "I should've been the one to go..."_

"_Ted," she said as sweet-fully, as caringly, as seriously as she could, "don't say that. What happened was terrible. And it wasn't your fault, it wasn't anybody's fault." He sat back up. "She's gone. And I'm sorry. But you do have two wonderful kids. And I know you're a great dad."_

_He gulped and blinked away what tears had formed. _

"_Ted, I know it's hard to believe you can pull through this. But you can, and you will. And – and I don't want to rush you, but one day, some day, you will heal. And some day, you'll get together with someone new. You're a gre-"_

_She never got to finish her sentence. It's hard to talk while someone's kissing you._

--

"Hi," the aging blond man said. He stood a good fifteen feet from the door, one hand nervously tugging at his suit, the other in his pocket. It was hard to tell if he was smiling or about to cry.

David was the first to step forward.

"Hey, I'm –"

"David, I uh... I know, I'm Barney – Uncle Barney." A grin spread across his face. "You look just like your dad."

"Uh..." He turned to his sister, who awkwardly introduced herself, as well.

"I'm Linda. Hello," she smiled politely, "Uncle Barney."

"Hi..." he said softly as his smiled widened. "Wow... You two have grown so much..."

"So we have met you before!" David smirked, and gave his sister an 'I told you so' glare. She immediately frowned and mouthed 'no'. When David turned back around he saw that the blond suited man's joyful expression was broken. He looked away, licking his lips, hoping to find a secret get-away somewhere.

"Hey," Lily interrupted, wanting to salvage the situation, "you kids want a snack?"

--

"_I'm sorry, Barney," Ted said as soon as Linda was gone._

"_Sorry? You're sorry?" His temper flared. "You slept with.. Robin. Ro-..." His jaw clenched up again. The pain, the painful truth of the situation came up again. _

_Robin was spending all her time with Ted, at Ted's – at first it was to help him, to help with the kids, with the house, with the bills; to help him cope. But it had been months. She spent more time with Ted than with Barney. She and Ted even started doing their "private" jokes again. Last month, the three of them went out to eat and Barney felt like the third wheel. _

"_Ted..." he bit down, biting into his lip, trying to stay strong – to look it at least; trying not to cry. "Ted, I love her." It came out as a desperate plea, his voice breaking as he spoke. All he could think, all he could wish for, he tried his best to demonstrate but the words never quite made it out; Please, don't take her from me..._

--

"How was I supposed to know he'd remember us!" David hissed to his sister. She aggressively handed him a pouch of juice.

"'_How was I suppose to know'_," she mimicked, mocking his tone. "I told you to play it cool!"

"No you didn't!"

"Uh, hello! Anybody in there!?" She continued to whisper angrily, gently tapping his head.

"Hey!"

"Sshhh!" She turned around to make sure no one had heard them before glaring once more at her younger brother. "Love triangle! Dad, Aunt Robin and Bar – Uncle Barney. How could you not see the division? They were all, like, best friends, Dad even admitted to already dating Aunt Robin and Bar –", she sighed, once more correcting herself, "Uncle Barney was crushed when they were 'friends with benefits'."

"I still don't get that term..."

"Focus!" She pointed her index and middle finger to her eyes. "She and Dad got married, and we've never even heard of him before! How's he supposed to feel about that?"

--

_Barney took another shot. "Wendy!" He mumbled, "I wannanother..."_

"_What?" Carl frowned. Wendy was at a table; Barney was sitting at the bar._

"_More please," the clearly intoxicated man smiled to his provider._

"_No, Barney, I'm cutting you off tonight." Carl took Barney's glass back – wrestling it away._

"_GAH! I hate you, I hate you all!" He folded his arms and pouted. "I am a paying customer, citizen! I vote and stuff... Do you know who I am!"_

"_A drunken jackass..." The woman who had just installed herself on his right murmured. Barney shot her a look, taking a few breaths which he exhaled angrily through his nose. She ignored him for the most part; she was waiting for a refill._

"_No!" He finally spat out like a child, upset over the truth. "I...I'm Barney. Is who I am..."_

_The brunette smiled, though utterly confused, she had to admit he was cute. "Well, Barney, I suggest you head home." She winked; drink now in hand and prepared to get back to her table. "Y'ain't getting any tonight."_


	6. Chapter 6

PART 6

Beta: roland44

A/N: I'm finding this to be much longer than I originally anticipated 0_o When I thought it up it was _supposed _to be like 6 parts. Now... So I had to add in a few extra parts. Sorry about the lack of update lately; I keep thinking of more uh... stuff. Plus I've been busy. Yeah no excuse. Sorry again, more tomorrow.

* * *

_Robin didn't love Ted. At least... not anymore; not since that time they dated – back in 2006. Those feelings never quite go away. That was normal, wasn't it? He was the first guy she really..._

_They do change though. They morph, from love to... to something else. Ted was her friend. He held a piece of her heart, sure, and she'd never get to forget that. But she wasn't in love with him. She hadn't for a long time. She didn't dream of him; she didn't spend her few, estranged moments of leisure thinking of things to do with him, thinking of things she would say, thinking of what he would say, thinking of what he was doing... thinking of him._

_Not Ted. No, she didn't love him. She was in love with his best friend – as he so often claimed – and he seemed really upset that she was spending so much time taking care of the widow and his kids._

"_Don't you mean why don't _I_ join_ you and Ted_ to dinner?" he grumbled in response. _

_She had asked him if they should – could – take Ted out to dinner with them. He had been getting better, although he still spent a lot of time ... mourning. Things were better._

"_What?" she asked hurt. She heard him sigh and walk to the bathroom where she was combing her hair._

_He came in, smiled comfortably, and hugged her from behind – wrapping his arms around her and letting his head gently rest on her shoulder._

"_Nothing," he whispered sweetly, watching for her wounded expression to fade. "I just haven't seen you in a while." She put her brush down. "Plus I'll be going away on that business trip in a few weeks."_

_She turned around, holding onto him, "Well they do need you to do.. stuff?"_

"_Please," he smirked. "Nice try – not the most creative..."_

"_Yeah, I kind of gave up on figuring out what it is back in 2012," she edge closer, burying her face in his dress shirt. For a moment they were both quiet, hugging one another, each trying to memorize the others' scent. "Ted'll get back on his feet..." Robin finally said. _

"_Yeah..." He tightened his hold. "He will."_

--

"They don't know anything, do they?" Barney sat down in Marshall and Lily's armchair and rubbed his forehead. "Ted's never talked about me? Like, seriously, never?"

"Well, that's not true," Marshall said trying to explain. "Ted's been telling them stories from the old days, about how he met their mom. He's been going on about you and Lily and I and... well, you know, the whole gang really."

"Right, the whole gang..."

"And," Lily jumped in, "our kids have met you and talked about you to them, sometimes..." She turned to Marshall and added, "Right?"

"Oh, sure! They love you; they go crazy for Uncle Barney... BarnBarn..."

"Huh?"

"The point is," Lily explained, "they haven't seen you since they were toddlers, Linda wasn't even in kindergarten when... when you stopped seeing them."

"That wasn't my fault!"

"I know," Marshall reassured him, "we know, it wasn't Barney. But you gotta understand, it wasn't theirs either."

--

_Robin entered Ted's house, quietly closing the door. She made her way to the kitchen, there was a bottle of whisky there. She took shaky breaths, she wasn't gonna cry, if she kept repeating that maybe it would become true._

"_Ted!" She said surprised, he was sitting at the table, downing another drink, the bottle of whisky at his elbow. "I uh... I didn't think you... uhh..." Ted looked her over for a few seconds before getting up. He pulled another glass out from the cupboard and put it on the table, sitting back down he poured the whisky._

"_Here," he edge the cup towards her and drank his own. It was the least he could do..._

--

Linda, sitting next to her newly discovered Uncle and her younger brother, waited impatiently for someone to break the silence. David twisted his head, looking around the apartment. It was ... well it was neat.

"So... what do you do for a living?" David tried.

"Please," he scoffed; it was pretty much a reflex.

David smiled madly and had a few chuckles escape. He got, in return, a raised eyebrow from Linda and Barney. Marshall and Lily glanced his way but looked at each other worriedly.

"Sorry, I didn't think you'd actually say it."

Linda mentally scolded him, Barney's eyes grew a little and he smiled back to David.

--

"_Robin, are you sure?" Lily asked carrying a few canvas boxes inside._

"_Yes!" Robin answered with frustration. She wasn't mad at Lily, she was just mad. The past few months had been hell. It all happened so fast... Ted... Barney..._

_...Barney._

_He wasn't taking her calls or was too busy to... either way, she didn't blame him. She just wished... the least he could do was talk to her, right?_

_But it seemed he didn't want to have anything to do with her. He hated her. And she couldn't blame him for it. In fact, she had thoughts on it herself._

_As long as she was here, though, she might as well do some good. _

_So she moved in with Ted. She got her own room, helped with the kids and stuff, and she was out of town most of the time, anyways._

_It was a good plan._

--

Barney lay back next to her, hormones rushing – panting for breath.

"I saw the kids today."

"Lily and Marshall's? She replied with a grin, turning around so that her upper body lay on top of his, she kissed his pecs working up to his neck.

"No..." he chuckled when she found a tickle spot. "Ted's."

"Ted?" She stopped abruptly. "I thought you two weren't speaking?"

"Hmm, we're not," he admitted.

"Then?..." She raised an eyebrow.

"Then..." He ran his fingers down her arm, down the side of her back, down...

"Barney!" They giggled while she playfully found his hand under their covers.

She turned, lying on her side, and brought his hand up and began examining it in her own, tracing the lines in his palm and interlocking her own fingers with his. They both watched thoughtfully, enjoying each other's company, enjoying the silence.

"Didn't he marry your ex?" She asked without looking at him.

"Yeah..."

--

"_Where is she?" Barney marched in as soon as Lily opened the door._

"_Barney?" She said completely surprised at his appearance, no one had heard of him in a month and a half._

"_Yeah, hi Lily." He didn't wait for an answer. "Where is she?!" He walked from room to room, shouting his question back to Lily._

"_Uncle Barney?" A small voice was heard, stopping the man in his tracks._

"_Oh, hey Penny," Barney answered politely. "Do you know where your Aunt Robin is?" _

"_NO!" Lily's eyes grew as soon as she heard the question, she was standing behind Barney who had bent down to talk to his niece. Both he and Penny turned to Lily confused by her outburst. "I mean... Penelope, why don't you go find your daddy?"_

"_Daddy's at work!" She cleverly responded._

"_Uh, well go give him a call, k?"_

"_But it's not 12 o'clock yet."_

"_He won't mind," Lily persisted, a plastered 'mommy' smile on. Barney stood up, knowing there would be bad news._

"_Okey-Dokey. See ya later, Uncle Barney," she said before strolling to the phone in the living room._

_When she had turned the corner Lily pointed Barney towards her bedroom and, once the two were inside, she closed the door._


	7. Chapter 7

PART 7 - smutless

**A/N: ****READ!** So because I would otherwise have to mark this story as "M for Mature" I'm putting the non-smut version on FF. This means that two sections here will be repeated later on. Sorry. For the mature, the smut, original, version can be found on my LJ page; delete the spacing: http:// jamie55. livejournal. com/ 86405. html

Otherwise, I apologize for the repeatition and hope I don't lose your readership - which is the reason I'm using the smutless version for FF =/

* * *

"_Another!" Barney called out from his stool at bar. It was the only safe place he had left. It wasn't MacLarens, he couldn't go to MacLarens. In truth, Ted and everyone else had stopped going after the kids were born, well except for a few weeks after the Mrs died. But it was too risky to hide there. Lily would look for him there. Marshall too, if he had the time. Ted and Robin... well they might... he didn't want them to find him. He didn't want to see them, any of them._

_The bar tender here was much more understanding then Carl._

"_Thank you Kevin," he softly said, letting his hand hug the glass. He felt a brisk pressure on his right arm, his elbows rested on the counter pointing away from his liquor. Frowning, he turned his head in time to hear a woman's voice._

"_Oh, sorry..." she leaned into the bar, Barney observed her, holding his drink closer. "Another pitcher, Kev."_

"_Sure thing, Ronny."_

_Barney couldn't help but think she looked oddly familiar... like a stranger you frequently see every other week or so... She wasn't bad looking either. Did he sleep with her?_

_She spotted him – staring at her with a growing inflexion – and frowned herself. _

"_Hey, I know you..."_

"_You know me?" He grinned, putting on his old mask, acting coy and cute, seducing her with a single stare. The words were flirty and grave, its true definition far from its intended meaning, "Cool," he winked._

"_Yeah, you're that drunken jackass from that other bar."_

_His face fell._

"_Uh... No I'm not..."_

"_Yeah, I think you are."_

"_Nah uh," he mumbled._

"_Yeah huh," she gave him a pointed stare – was he really going to play _that_ card?_

"_NAH UH!" He shouted, looking around when silence and its tension fell upon them. "You don't... I... she was..." he tried to explain when Kevin stared at him questionably. "Sorry."_

--

"Hey, Lindlee?" David asked sitting across from his older sister at the kitchen table. Her name was often moulded into different variations, Linda, Leia, Lizzie, pretty much anything that started with a "lee" sound. David's name, on the other hand, it wasn't messed with – not much.

"Hmm?" She was busy updating her status and surfing the net, her gaze remained fixed on table where her windows were open.

"You think Aunt Robin and dad actually... you know?"

"No, what?" She asked moving a window to her side and double-clicking on another before typing something on the slide-out keyboard at the edge of the table.

"Come on, you know what I'm talking about."

"What? The sex? Didn't your teachers talk to you guys about that yet? Sex," she began her speech, "was once considered as nothing but unlawful carnal knowledge; it was even taboo for quite some time. But nowadays we know – or at least most of the population in developed lands understand that sex is a physical act."

--

_Barney's gaze fell back down to his glass, still half full, of gin and tonic. He wanted to go home. He wanted to lie in bed. He wanted to crawl under the covers and never be heard of again. Just fall asleep._

_He wouldn't bother anyone then. He'd be out of their way. It was better that way. He just..._

_Barney just got in the way. He should've learned that a long time ago, but he always stubbornly refused to accept it._

"_Hey Barney, I'm going head to the W.C. for a bit, k?" Colin, who was sitting across from him in their booth, said. _

"_Yeah, 'kay." He mumbled in reply._

_He felt like there some sort of void in him. Like the whole world was passing by him. Like he was literally alone. _

_He felt completely alone. Isolated. Isolated 'cause he was infected with ... with feelings... _

_That's why he had to leave. His presence just made things worse._

--

"Sex is perfectly natural," Linda continued. "That whole, 'you do it when you're in love' is just crumbs for the love-sick-pigeons of the world. Everyone, from your teachers to the bimboes on TV, from the stereotype 1950s stay-at-home mom to that smelly bus driver, craves sex – to some primal level. Yeah, they probably do it every once in a while; but it's like dad explained in the story, it's just sex."

--

_Damn. What was wrong with him! He was Barney Stinson! He didn't get sad, he got... he got awesome instead!_

_He's awesome._

_Awesome... awesome... awesome... awesome... awesome... awesome – _

"_Hey Barney," she said, snapping him out of his mantra. "Totally class'd up right?" She motioned towards herself, turning so he could see her entire body._

"_Class'd up?" He said sceptically, though he had to admit she did look smoking hot. She was wearing a red dress and it hung in all the right spots..._

"_It could catch on."_

"_No," he said grinning shyly. "No it couldn't." She took a seat right across from him, pushing her hair back._

"_But I look hot right?" She smiled devilishly, taking a confident pose so Barney could soak it all in. He couldn't help but smile, feeling a little better._

"_Yup." He had to stay away from Robin for a while. "You look hot." But it was for the best. Besides, he was a big boy. _

_He was awesome._

--

"So you don't think they love each other?" Which was his initial question, he really didn't want a sex-talk from his sister. It made his stomach uneasy.

"Not really," she shook her head dismissively then looked up. "You?"

"No. I mean, they don't hate each other, but they aren't in love – not anymore anyways, they're friends, it's not like-"

His sister giggled suddenly.

"What's so funny?" He asked, annoyed that she wasn't listening.

"Nothing," she smiled and typed some more.

"Hello? I'm talking here!"

"Sure ya're buddy," moved a window around and clicked on a link. "Got a point?"

"Yes I have a point." He said insulted. "I think Aunt Robin's still in love with that Barney-"

"Uncle Barney," she corrected him.

"-with Uncle Barney," he finished. He waited for her to object, to approve, to say anything. "Well?"

"Well what?" She frowned double clicking on something.

"Well," he hesitated, "Well what do think about that?"

"It's total O.N. dude, Old News."

"You knew?"

"Si, as soon as Aunt Robin said Aunt Lily would be the one taking us to meet him, it was like, facepalm-obvious."

David grunted and left the room.

--

_She spotted him walking into Dorchester, a bar they usually hung about. It wasn't too crowded, and it wasn't too noisy. The drinks were good and the company was handsome, and – as a bonus – it was close to home too._

_He seemed lost._

_This wasn't his usual bar. This wasn't his usual place. He was a fish out of water._

_He looked around, searching every corner for a familiar face – hers, she knew. He would probably pretend he was trying to find some hottie to hit on, but she knew he wanted to find some sort of comfort zone in this, his new life. _

_Being brave; being adventures; living life to its fullest and never looking back, never worrying about the future and where this ride will bring you in ten years – it's exhausting. She knew that._

_He finally found her, and she smiled back before turning her head to join in the conversation as he made his way to their table._

"_Hello," he said with a charming smile and giddy eyes. He sat down, relaxed and cool, as if this was what he always did, as if these people weren't strangers but his closest friends. "I'm Barney – BTW."_

"_Wow, that's a weird last name." Colins commented, he wasn't the most welcoming of persons. "How do you spell it?"_

"_No, no, no. It's –" Harold turned away from Colins momentarily to look at Barney who was sitting on his direct right, across from her. "I'm sorry; Colins can be quite offensive sometimes." He turned back to Colins and Rita. "It's obviously some sort of native American name." _

"_Really?" Rita added, "I was thinking more along the lines of Germany."_

"_German? Rita I-" Colins was interrupted._

"_No, think about it! He could be all," she contorted her face together, trying to act as overly dramatic and angry as possible – something you might imagine an ancient fictional soldier might seem like. "ALT! HEIZ IN!" Harold covered her mouth with his hand._

"_Rita, sweetheart." He cooed, "I don't want to get kicked out of here again. Inside voice, k?" _

"_But I'mzza Germanic soldier who'ze no to youse Yanky demands!"_

"_God, I hope no real German heard that."_

_They laughed and joked all night, Barney included, although he tried to play his part as the timeless ritual of hazing new members went on 'til 3:21am when Veronica had to head home._


	8. Chapter 8

PART 8

Beta: **roland44**  
A/N: I'll admit I was racking my brain with one or two small holes in my story ("well that just doesn't seem IC" or "how did that happen?") but I'm happy to say I figured most of them out, one requires a bit more research. Anywho, more to be explained later.

_

* * *

_

Barney almost ripped his tie off when he and Robin got home. After their dinner together, Ted had insisted on getting his own cab, but Robin had insisted that it wouldn't be any trouble for them to drive him home. Sure, no hassle. What's 40 minutes to and from between friends?

_Robin came through the door when his jacket was off. He headed for the kitchen. She closed the door behind her while he opened up a bottle of Brandy. _

_By the time she took her jacket off and strolled into the kitchen he was pouring himself a second serving. She didn't say anything, she just frowned perplexed or concerned – he couldn't tell and he didn't want to know – meanwhile, he downed his beverage and refused to look at her._

"_What's the matter?" she finally asked._

_He tilted his head to the left, trying to edge that nerve away. Stabilized himself on the counter, pushing down on it with both hands_

"_Barney..." she touched his arm, edging herself closer. "Barney, are you okay? You acted weird all night."_

_He muffled a chuckle, scoffing her reasoning. _He acted weird? He's been the one acting bizarre? He was the one who seemed distant?!

"_Barney?"_

_He pulled away, moving to the living room. "I'm going out."_

"_What do you mean you're going out? It's almost 2 o'clock!"_

_He stopped at the door, hand inches away from the knob; he licked his lip. "Robin," he said still facing the door. "I just need some time alone, right now." He couldn't turn around, but he knew exactly what she was thinking. "I'll be home later." _

_It took a moment for her to answer. _

"_Okay," she gulped. "Barney?" He raised his head, alert. "I love you."_

_His eyes closed shut, wincing. "I love you too." He opened the door and left._

--

David took one last deep breath – trying to calm his nerves. He took two buses and a common-cab to get here. And you couldn't chose who you rode with in those Co-Cabs, he had to deal with a co-rider who wouldn't shut up. But he was here, that's what mattered.

He pushed the button at the entrance to the address. It looked like the right place... he had taken a photo of it on his cell when no one was looking and googled it for directions and fare charge and all those FYIs.

The monitor came to life, but without video (he probably wasn't expecting anyone).

"Hello?" a female voice answered.

"Uh... hi," he timidly waved to the small camera – just because he couldn't see them, didn't mean they didn't see him. "Is Barney Stinson there?"

--

"_Lily what happened?" Barney asked as she hurried him into Penny's room, afraid her daughter might return and hear the discussion. "Where's Robin?! Her boss told me she's been cutting her hours, her cell's dead and all her things are out of our –" he paused, taking a much need breath. "I can't find her anywhere!"_

"_Where have you been?!" Lily squeaked._

"_What?"_

"_We've been trying to reach you for almost two months!" She punched him in the arm._

"_Ow!" he said flinching backwards._

"_You don't call; you don't tell anyone where you've gone! Robin called the police, you know!"_

"_She called the police?"_

"_You could've been kidnapped or something!"_

"_I left a note..."_

"_A note! You disappear for 6 weeks and all you have as an explanation is a note?!" aggravation building in her voice, she had assumed the worst and to see him walk in as if nothing had happened... "You had us worried sick!"_

"_Yeah, well I'm sorry, okay!" He said before she could start another rant. "I had to get away for a little while, but I'm fine and I need to see Robin!" He waited to see her reaction. Lily seemed to have calmed down, but she looked down at the mention of Robin. "Lily," he said catching her eye. "Where is she?"_

--

"Where's your brother?" Robin asked Linda when she walked into the living room.

"Uh... he went to watch a movie, I think." She was never a good liar – but she had been practicing in front of the mirror a lot.

"Alone?"

"Uh... no?" she ventured.

"No?" Robin sceptically asked, creasing her brow.

"I think he went with Mitchell and Juan?" Linda quickly found a great deal of interest in one of the photos hanging on the wall – the one where the old gang, grandma and grandpa were sitting together having brunch; the one where they all seemed happy. "Hey Aunt Robin?" she said, before her Aunt could see through her lie.

"Hmm?" She was once again browsing the digi-newspaper.

"Can I ask you something?" She asked turning thoughtfully to her Aunt.

"Sure, sweetie, go ahead."

"Why did you and Uncle Barney break up?"

--

_Barney's gaze fell back down to his glass, still half full, of gin and tonic. He wanted to go home. He wanted to lie in bed. He wanted to crawl under the covers and never be heard of again. Just fall asleep._

_He wouldn't bother anyone then. He'd be out of their way. It was better that way. He just..._

_Barney just got in the way. He should've learned that a long time ago, but he always stubbornly refused to accept it._

"_Hey Barney, I'm going head to the W.C. for a bit, k?" Colin, who was sitting across from him in their booth, said. _

"_Yeah, 'kay." He mumbled in reply._

_He felt like there some sort of void in him. Like the whole world was passing by him. Like he was literally alone. _

_He felt completely alone. Isolated. Isolated 'cause he was infected with ... with feelings... _

_That's why he had to leave. His presence just made things worse._


	9. Chapter 9

PART 9

beta: roland44 =)

A/N: Okay one the recommendation of a few – this has got time stamping and less jumping around... thoughts, questions, concerns, anecdotes?

* * *

"_She moved in with Ted?" Barney felt something go numb in his chest though he felt a comforting hand on his back. He struggled for words, fighting those awful feelings as they crept upwards and threatened to form tears. "Wh... when?" It was 2021 and he was sitting on his niece's bed, the brightly coloured shapes and unicorn poster acting as a strange contrast to his conversation with Lily._

"_About three weeks ago," Lily answered. "But there's nothing going on!" She quickly added._

"_Yeah, like before?" Barney said, his voice lull but his eyes burned. _

"_Well, that was one time..." Barney turned to glare at her, ready to break down. "Not that..." her mouth was left gasping for something to say, something reassuring, something that'll make things... better. "They both felt really bad about it...?"_

_Barney sighed, letting his head fall into his hands. He groaned and shook his head. All Lily could think of doing was to rub his back until he spoke again._

--

David felt like an intruder in Bar- in his Uncle's house. Sitting as far into his seat as physically possible, he hesitantly took the cup of tea the woman offered him. She was wearing this old fashion red dress, but cut just right to make her look pretty stylish – fabric extending to her elbow and her neckline cut like a wide circle around her head. She had soft brown hair and a kind and inviting manner, welcoming him in and treating him like a close friend.

But David still felt really awkward.

"Well," Barney said walking into the room wearing a suit and a vintage top hat, "David, this is a real surprise."

The boy was about to sip his tea but froze and looked up. "I, I... uhh – I was just in the – came by and I thought: hey I should stop by that guy's place and see what he's up to ...." he gulped looking from host to hostess, "'cause, he's awesome..."

--

"_Barney, where were you?" Lily asked. He probably wouldn't tell her otherwise. She heard him sigh again before lifting his head up from between his hands, "you've been gone for 6 weeks."_

"_I was... away." He kept his head down rubbing his eyes with his fingers – as if he were tired._

"_Out of town?"_

"_At one point..." he mumbled absently and blinking furiously._

"_Why?" she begged to know._

"_I thought... Well you know how Ted and Robin –"_

"_That happened one time, Barney, and they both felt terrible about it!"_

"_It's not that... Well, not just that..."_

"_Then, what is it?"_

"_I was... I was getting in the way..." he began to explain._

--

"You're always welcomed here." Barney said to David, grinning from ear to ear, as he took a seat on a stool meant for the kitchen.

"Thanks." David said, sitting up a little straighter now that his cup was empty and his tummy experiencing the tea's calm and warming effect.

"Well, I'd love to say and chat but I'm afraid I'm late. There's an art show across town," she turned to David to explain, "I'm going to hunt for something ripe; wish me luck! Drop by if you can, alright, Barney?" Barney nodded, still smiling, while David tried to hide his grin. This was great. He was going to get to Barney one-on-one. Man to man! He jumped when the door closed behind Barney's guest – what was her name? Veronica?

"So, David," Barney started, "Would you care for some more tea?"

--

_After talking to Lily, Barney had come to the bar. To Dorchester. He was in luck – one of his new friends was there. Colin was nice, even if he hadn't warmed up to him yet. Whatever. _

_And now here he was, Barney Stinson, getting drunk and lounging in his own pity._

_Damn. What was wrong with him! He was Barney Stinson! He didn't get sad, he got... he got awesome instead!_

_He's awesome._

_Awesome... awesome... awesome... awesome... awesome... awesome – _

"_Hey Barney," Veronica said, snapping him out of his mantra. "Totally class'd up right?" She motioned towards herself, turning so he could see her entire body._

"_Class'd up?" He said sceptically, though he had to admit she did look smoking hot. She was wearing a red dress and it hung in all the right spots..._

"_It could catch on."_

"_No," he said grinning shyly. "No it couldn't." She took a seat right across from him, pushing her hair back._

"_But I look hot right?" She smiled devilishly, taking a confident pose so Barney could soak it all in. He couldn't help but smile, feeling a little better._

"_Yup." He had to stay away from Robin for a while. "You look hot." But it was for the best. Besides, he was a big boy. _

_He was awesome._


	10. Chapter 10

PART 10

Beta: **roland44** - the awesome  
A/N: For the 3 people - on lj and ff - who've been keeping up on the updates and commenting *HUGS* It really means a lot ^^

* * *

"_Think about it Lily." Barney's brow deepened as he got to his feet and he started pacing Penny's room. "Robin and Ted –" he sighed trying to find the right words. God damn... "They've always had a thing. You know, Marshall knows it, I know it..."_

_Lily tried to object – Ted and Robin weren't a couple; they broke up years ago; they both found someone else; Robin was still in love with Barney (she knew she was, she had to be); Ted's still confused, he took her death the hardest... But Barney countered before she could open her mouth._

"_Ever since Ted first spotted her, he's been in love with her. They dated and it couldn't work out, but they couldn't stay away! We all stayed friends!" He desperately gestured, explaining the situation to some invisible third party. "They stayed close! When times got tough – back in '09? – they became fuck-buddies! When Robin got freaked about..." he paused looking away and licking his lips as he prepared to continue. _

"_When Robin and I had a few fights, she turned to him for help – not you, Lily; Ted. Ted was there for her. When Ted met "the one" she played puppet master with you to keep the two happy. She and Ted were..." he closed his eyes, fighting tears, shaking his head and hoping the thoughts would disappear. _

"_Ted needs her, and Robin needs him." He said in solemn regret looking directly at Lily whose mouth was parted in dismay. "And now that Ted's wife is gone, he needs help more than ever. I'm tired of fighting it, Lily. Robin's better off without me."_

--

"Come on, Aunt Robin, why did you and Barney break it off?" Linda persisted to ask her Aunt who attempted to flee into the kitchen, excusing herself with the reason that supper preparations to be made. "Was it you? Was it him?"

"Linda, why are you and your brother suddenly so interested?" She diverted.

"David's been bugging, a bit. You know him, always a romantic, he's – uh..." She stopped herself one word to late.

"Yes?" She asked, eyebrows raised.

"He might be shipping you two."

"He's what?"

"Shipping." Robin continued to stare at Linda completely confused, holding a jug of juice she had taking out of the fridge. "It's short for relationship. As in relation-SHIP. " Robin cocked her head as she poured herself a cup. Linda sighed, closing her eyes she cursed herself for what she was about to do. "He wants – he thinks he can get you two back together."

--

_"Barney, Barney what are you –" Lily stood up, ready to argue, Barney started to fidget, jaw clenched, hands adjusting his jacket (no tie), looking around the room and messing with his hair. "Look, just sit down okay? We gotta talk about this, Robin'll –"_

_"No." Something in Barney's stance, in the way he persisted in shaking his head and in the way his eyes glistened with moisture made Lily shut up. Although it was clear he had barely slept, he was completely awake and somehow seemed in control; he seemed sure of himself. His head dropped and his shoulders shook gently as a few quiet sobs were heard. He continued to shake his head and wiped his eyes with the sleeve of his suit, trying to cover up his miserable state. However, he let her hear a loud sniffle and see that his face was now blushed, lip quivering._

_"No," his voice strained as he took a shaky breath. "No. It's better this way. Robin and I, it's..." He took a shaky breath, stabilizing his tone; he closed his eyes and clenched his jaw, and tried his hardest to swallow the lump in his throat with no success. "I have to break up with Robin... It's for the best."_

--

"So, David," Barney poured himself a cup of tea and, looking to David, raised his eyebrow and the pot to him, asking if he wanted some more.

"Oh, sure," he got up and made it to the kitchen counter with only stubbing one toe on a chair. "Thanks."

"Yeah, so, uh... How are you?" He grinned, although he wasn't sure what to talk about, he really was grateful for the visit.

"I'm great, yeah uh... school's almost out." He nodded pleasantly. "I got an exam next week."

"Oh, which one?"

"Math!" David continued to nod extending his hand in expression of this fascinating fact. "It's got all these symbols and calculations."

"Numbers and stuff..."

"And! And, even some letters."

"Yeah..." the feigned enthusiasm died off. "That's great." They needed a change of subject.

"Yup," it wasn't the best opening but he wasn't going to back down now. "So uh... was that lady your girlfriend?"

"Who?" Barney asked before taking a sip of tea, casting his gaze into the drink as his brow furrowed. "Veronica?"

David nodded, "Hmmmhuh."

"Uh, no I wouldn't say that."

"So," he guessed, "is she just another bimbo?"

"What?" He looked really confused now.

"Come on, my dad told me all the stories. Barney Stinson, slept with over 200 women, came this close to the tricycle."

"That's what he thinks," Barney murmured under his breath.

"You are _the_ man to have as a wing-man. You know all the moves and you can get any chick you want." He saw his Uncle grin – if it was because he was flattered or amused by his childish admiration, it was hard to tell.

"That was a long time ago, kid," Barney moved to the living room.


	11. Chapter 11

PART 11

Beta: **roland44**  
A/N: Okay I think I can make it in... *counts* 15 or 16 chapters? I'm not positive though... Could take longer =/  
A/N/N: If I say please will you comment? Srly, I hate to ask but... pretty please?

* * *

"Yeah, well, it wasn't that long ago." David followed Barney into his living room. "So come on, you can tell me. Was she a bimbo you just had meaningless sex with and will never call again?" He sat down on the couch; his Uncle a few feet away from him was observing his beverage once more.

"Veronica..." he slowly admitted, "is a friend –"

"So you two aren't dating?" He quickly asked.

"Well no," he frowned, "not really –"

"Have you ever slept together?" He persisted again. This time Barney paused and turned to David.

"Aren't you a little young to be –"

"Would you be willing to move to another country for this Veronica?" He continued to question Barney in the same curious and sober tone he began with, unwilling to let his Uncle change the topic.

"David, what are –"

"Are you secretly in love with her?" The question shot out of him

"What?" Barney asked utterly confused and too perplexed to answer his newly found nephew.

"Not-secretly in love?" He ventured.

--

_Lily tried her best to convince him otherwise, but Barney's mind had been made. And after a difficult discussion, Lily seemed to understand where he stood – she was still against it, still doe-eyed and believed they could live happily ever after. What a joke – he'd laugh if his circumstance didn't make his stomach churn and his heart numb with pain._

_He knew what he should do, what was best for everyone; the only thing left to do was to talk to Robin._

_Barney stretched his legs, trying to wake up the best he could. He had a bruise on his thigh, he knew that, but he barely noticed it. He had to get up; he had to get up and get dressed. Get up, get dressed, and talk to Robin. Talk to Robin Scherbatsky._

_He delicately found the floor and made his way to the bathroom, collecting his belongings on the way there. Ronny was still asleep, head sunk into her pillow and buried in blankets. Before leaving he left her a note – along the lines of: 'early meeting; like we said: nothing happened right?; might not be at the bar tonight'. He couldn't quite shake off the guilt or the recognition of what an awful idea he had had last night. Sleeping with someone to forget someone else? He had tried it for a year before finally coming clean about his affection for Robin – it didn't work then, why would it work now? _

_But it had to work. Some time and distance... and in no time Barney Stinson was sure he'd be able to sleep with another woman without a second thought, or a first for that matter, about one Robin Scherbatsky. But right now; right now he still needed some time..._

_A face to face encounter would be hard, and a phone call... A phone call would be just as hard._

_This way, at least he'd be able to see her again._

--

"Look, David, what do you what me to say?" Barney asked after an awkward silence between the two of them.

"Hey I'm just trying to figure out what's going out between you two wild cats." He shrugged casually.

"Wild cats?"

"Isn't that what you guys used to say back then?" They once again found themselves frowning in confusion. "Never mind."

"Alright," Barney sighed, "so you wanna know who's the lucky lady in my life?"

"Yes!" David exclaimed.

"Fine. You see, David, your Uncle Barney was once totally awesome – ask Sam if you don't believe me."

"Sam?"

"Yeah, my nephew, great guy, you should meet. Anyways, as time went by I became... accustomed to a few high choices –"

"Sorry?"

"You know, I kept the best of the best, to revisit." He grinned and cocked his head, in the best of intentions.

"Oh, okay – the actual saying is top choice..." Barney's brow creased in disappointed shame – though he then raised his eyebrows and smirked lightly, remembering Ted's obsession with correcting everyone. David readjusted his legs position and awkwardly said, "But yeah; go on."

"Well, time passed and as it so happened Veronica is," he rolled his eyes and sighed before adding, "a _top_ choice."

"Ah, I get ya."

"Yeah, she and I got real close during her divorce, back in '21 and '22. They'd been separated when I started hanging out with her gang of friends." He smiled nostalgically, though something deeper, something darker flicker to the surface, forcing him to twitch his eyes and purse his lips.

"So... you two are, kind of together?" David said, intrigued by his Uncle's reactions although his words were disappointing.

"Yeah," Barney shrugged, "I guess, sort of, not really, a little." He stared with discontent into his empty cup.

"More tea?" David asked. "Or something stronger?"

--

_Robin still had to get supper ready, David's nap would finish in about 40 minutes and there wasn't any more milk. Great. 'Course the garbage was full – she grunted – one more thing to do. She stuffed the potato peels in the bag and tied the ends together._

_For the past month, Ted had managed to resume work at school and she'd changed her hours to better suit her new lifestyle. She'd taken the night and weekend shift and cut most of her out of town trips – Maddie, the new girl, was covering all that stuff now._

_Robin pulled the bag out of the kitchen, headed out the back door, to make her way to the bin. _

_She didn't mind, Ted needed her help and how could she say no when Lindey and David needed someone. Her thoughts spun around, back to supper and to cooking. The potatoes were done, so all she had to do now was mash them up, the ground beef was already browned and now she just had to arrange it all with the corn and put it back in the oven for 10 to 15 more minutes to warm it back up – shit she needed the milk to make the mashed potatoes..._

_With these busy thoughts, Robin didn't notice the man standing outside._


End file.
